Rapid Response initiative to fast-track Zika research

The Medical Research Council (MRC) is to make £1m available for research applications tackling the Zika virus

The MRC has announced a Rapid Response initiative for research applications aimed at combatting the risk posed by the Zika virus.

Initially, up to £1m from the Government’s Global Challenges Research Fund will be made available, through the Rapid Response initiative, to researchers applying for grants to investigate the nature of the virus, its transmission and the potential links to neurological conditions including microcephaly. 

At the same time as the Rapid Response initiative, the UK MRC and the Foundation for Science and Technology of the state of Pernambuco (FACEPE) said they will jointly fund a research proposal to investigate the viral features and host responses to Zika virus with a view to designing new preventative strategies.

This agreement follows a joint call for research applications under the UK Government’s Newton Fund.

The main objective of the project is to study the presence and epidemiology of the Zika virus in Brazil and to understand how the immune system of people infected with the virus responds to the infection.

Genetic techniques will be used to support diagnostics and vaccine development studies as well as helping to understand the biology of the Zika virus during infection, according to the MRC.

John Savill, the MRC’s chief executive, said: “It’s critical that we find out more about the Zika virus as soon as possible, so we are allocating funding to help researchers answer some of the most pressing questions about the disease. 

“We need to be able to develop treatments and vaccines but first we need answers to vital questions about the nature of this virus -  such as if and how it is changing, how to control the spread of the disease, and how to both diagnose and prevent infection.

 “Zika is unlikely to be a serious public health problem in the UK, because the virus is spread by tropical mosquitos, but it’s hugely important that we use our home-grown expertise to help tackle health problems of significant global impact.”

Universities and Science Minister, Jo Johnson, said: “The spread of the Zika virus to a growing number of countries in Central and South America has now been recognised as a global emergency by the WHO.